One Bag At A Time

I heard this thingy on NPR yesterday about stores that will no longer offer plastic bags as of this year (Whole Foods, IKEA) and what manufacturers are doing to keep up with the "green is the new black" trend among, well, everyone.  They're producing degradable plastic bags, which is exactly what I picked up the last time I needed trash bags but wanted to stop using the Glad ones I'd been buying for years.

The story goes on to debate whether or not these degradable bags are safe for the environment, since they're still plastic.  Jury's still out, of course, since this is a relatively new product.  Anyway, the story got me thinking about some of the changes I've made since realizing just how much plastic we all consume on a daily basis, and the detrimental impact it has on our environment.  With notes:

• Aforementioned degradable plastic kitchen trash bags, which I bought at Whole Foods.  (BTW, check it: the new downtown Whole Foods is going to be huge!).  These bags work just as well as the Glad ForceFlex bags I was using before, though you can't fill them as high, since you use the bag's corners to tie it closed.  But it's a durable product.

• Per ranty's suggestion here, washing and reusing plastic food storage bags.  Holy crap, do I feel like an idiot for never realizing you could use these things over and over and over again.  I was just throwing them away, destroying aquatic life with each careless toss.  They really do hold up, and you can even buy a Bag-E-Wash to hold them in place in the dishwasher.  I just handwash mine, no biggie.

• Cotton cloth produce bags, which I found on Amazon.  The pack of three large bags I bought suits my needs perfectly for bagging up a pound of tomatillos or bunches of leafy greens.  I don't bother bagging larger produce items-- really, why bother?  Since I also buy bulk dried foods on occasion, I went with cotton over the mesh.

• Reusable grocery bags.  I bought this reusable bag at Petco, since all proceeds are donated to the Petco Foundation for animals.  I also sometimes reuse the free paper grocery bags, but most of those get put out on garbage day, full of recyclables.  I have full-on recycling mania.

I usually carry a handbag, which has been infinitely effective in decreasing the number of plastic bags I take home after a day of shopping.  I can stuff a lot of things in there and, when something ends up being too big, I just carry it to the car.

When I really look around the house at all the plastic, the task of reducing my use seems so daunting.  So I'm just cutting it back a little at a time; maybe next month I'll tackle the giant issue of cosmetics and toiletries containers.

Comments

[jessica]

I'm all for going green -- and in fact, this year I purchased a few canvas grocery bags to keep in my car for last-minute, unexpected grocery runs...

But I also have a 70 lb dog. And she poops a lot. And I walk her. And I like to be a good citizen and pick up after her. And I also like to have a back yard that people can walk in comfortably... and I switched to plastic bags last year for exactly this reason. At least, then, the bags are getting at least 2 uses (first for groceries, then to pick up after Gracie).

I'll be disappointed if I have to start buying bags.

[Kaiser]

Lunds and Byerly's sell the cloth tote grocery bags too for like a $1 a bag or so...the hardest part is remembering to bring them with you...

[Kristen]

Those produce bags are awesome! I never really know what to do with the bags after I bring home my lettuce. I do use them for doggy-cleanup, but I honestly find that I have way more bags than I need. I will have to find a source other than Amazon for them. I don't buy from Amazon because they continue to sell dog-fighting and cock-fighting materials.

[Alexis]

Interesting. You can buy them directly from ecobags.com, too.

[gretchen]

I am a proud re-user of all plastic bags, including those that produce comes in. I also try to not even buy them now and just use tupperware whenever possible. A great book for anyone to buy on Amazon is HOME SAFE HOME. Tons of hints and of course, some scary notes about enviornmental pollutions. Did you know the average human poops out 10lbs of chemical waste a year?! All those household cleaner fumes, including chemicals from dryer sheets - the worst offender of them all!

[marrina]

Target sent me a re-usable shopping bag with my Vanity Fair. although I'm strongly against giant Target logos on anything, I actually thing this bag is pretty stylish. I might actually use it... also, I think I want to get one of those shopping baskets for the summer ..

[Alexis]

At the very least, you can use it at Target!

[marrina]

and God knows I do shop at Target a LOT. almost too much..

[Abby Girl]

As for make up - MAC Makeup does the recycle program. When you bring in 6 used containers they give you a free lipstick! So you are recycling AND getting free stuff!

[drew]

Cub has been kickin the dollar cloth bags now for a while too, just sometimes a bit hard to find. I can't really afford the Whole Foods yet, although it will be my prime choice in about a year or so.

Look for the Cub cloth bags right by the checkout lines, one down on Xerxes south of 62 has em across the way on the fridge/dairy isle.

[Alexis]

Fridley Cub has them at the service desk, right in front of you as you enter the store.

I just noticed Bag-E-Wash is a local company. You can buy them at 3 area stores, as well as online.

[433]

That Whole Food will indeed be huge...if they ever build it. It's been sitting vacant, awaiting any work whatsoever.

I'm now addicted to the cinnamon fried almonds I can get at the Whole Foods in Austin, at the flagship store. They don't have them at either of the stores here.